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Archives of Plaid Cymru (20th C.)

A collection on microfilm of all of Plaid Cymru’s main political publications, from its early years in the 1920s, up to the first Devolution referendum in 1979. Included are: Welsh and English language political pamphlets; campaigning publications; programmes and minutes of Party conferences for the years 1946 and 1958-1978; minutes of the meetings of the National Council of Plaid Cymru; international memoranda and publications of the Plaid Cymru Research Group; complete runs of the Party newspapers Y Ddraig Goch (1926-1978) and Welsh Nation (1932-1978); Triban (1939-1970) and the Party’s youth magazine Y Wawr (1958-1962); and books printed by and on behalf of Plaid Cymru. Material from all the Party leaders is included, such as Lewis Valentine, Saunders Lewis, J. E. Daniel, Gwynfor Evans and Dafydd Wigley, with further contributions from other important figures in the Welsh nationalist movement, such as Gwynn Matthews, Robyn Lewis and Myrddin Lloyd. Topics covered include nationalism and devolution, economics and industry, agriculture, and Wales in Europe.

Included are political pamphlets, party newspapers, and campaigning publications.

The collection is supplemented by a large quantity of other published materials in the Salisbury Library collection, both before and after 1979. These include newsletters, leaflets, booklets, as well as more substantial academic texts about Plaid Cymru. For the period after 1997 in particular, a collection of party political leaflets is held for each election to the National Assembly of Wales from 1999 onwards (from all political parties).

Date range: 1926-2010

Significance: Significant in Wales and the United Kingdom.

Size: 25 reels of microfilm, plus 100s of other publications, and several hundred other documents included.